Apparatus for refining oil.



J. R. TIMMINS & 0. SWAiN.

APPARATUS ron nErmmG on.

APPLlCATiON FILED UAR. 8 l9i5`.

Patented Apr. 11, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

atten-wao 1.8. HMMNS SWAN.

APPARATUS FR HEFIHING (NL.

APPLICATION mw MAR. a, my

1,179,243. Patented Apr. 11, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES TIMMINS AND ORLANDO SWAlN, OF OKMULGEE, OKLAHOMA.

APPARATUS FOR REFINING OIL.

Application led March 8, 1915.

Y clear. and exact description ot' the invention,

such as will enable othersl Skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same.

This invention relates to the oil-refining industry, and moreparticularly to apparatus for refining crude oil or its by-products.lleretofore consideralile loss has been eXperienced by those engaged inrefining mineral oil due to the inter-mingling of the lighter with theheavier oils during distillation and it is one of the objects of thisinvention to provide a distilling apparatus which will enable theproducts of volatilization from the original stock to be repeatedlyevaporated and condensed, whereby the production of the lighter oils maybe greatly augmented.

Another and still further object of this invention is the provision of anovel manifold connection wherein the lvapors arising from the retortwill not be discolored by the descending products of condensation.

Another and still further Object of this invention is to provide aplurality of relatively arranged and intercommunieating manifoldswherein an eXceptional large condensing area is provided for thevolatilized products.

\\'ith these and other objects in view, our invention consists 0fcertain novel details of construction, and combination and arrangementof parts as will be more particularly hereinafter set forth and claimed.

1n the accompanying drawings in which correspondingr parts are indicatedb v similar reference numerals: Figure 'l is a diagramniatie view: Fig.2 is a side elevation of a .portion ofthe apparatus showing moreparticularly the'construction and arrangement of the manifolds: Fig. isa transverse vertical section of the coolingr tank and tail house: Fig.l is a horizontal section taken on the line -l--l of l"i Il. A

ln its` illustrated embodiment. our ihren-- tion comprises a retort orstill l provided with suitable inlet openings and adapted to retain thecrude oil to be refined. Rising Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 11, 1916.

Serial No. 12,885.

from the central portion of the retort 1 is a dome 2 into which thevapors produced by heating of the retort`s contents collect. EX- tendingvertically from the central portion of the dome 2 is a pipe 3 the upperend of which communicates with a cross head 4 into which the vapors ofdome 2 ascend.

Rising in suitably spaced relation from the l cross head 1t are aplurality of conduits 5 the free ends of which communicate with thepipes t5 of the vertically disposed manifold 7 having at its lowerextremity a cross head to receive the condensate trom the pipes (i whichcondensate is conveyed from the cross head in a manner hereinafter to bedescribed.A For the sake of convenience the manifold or condenser A willbe termed the primary manifold or condenser. Commu nicating with theupper ends of-pipcs t3 of the. manifold 7 are a series of pipes 9 whichlatter comprise what may bc termed the secondary manifold or condenser10. The pipes of the secondary manifold 10 are inclined upwardly fromthe. upper ends of the primary manifold 7. A plurality of verticallydisposed pipes 1l which form the tertiary manifold or condenser 12 havetheir upper ends communicating with the `.free ends of manifold 10, thelower extremities of the pipes 11 being connected to a cross head ll,one extremity `of which is closed. the other opening into a suitablysupported receiver 1l. To enable the condensate which collects inreceiver 1 l to be conveyed to the retort. 1. the latter is incommunication with the receiver 1l by means of a pipe 15 proided with asuitable valve 13 in the length thereof. To conduct the uncondensedvapors from receiver lit the latter has its upper end communicating withone end of a branch pipe l5" the other extremity of which communicateslwith a pipe 16. More over to enable the condensate collecting,r in crosshead b' to be conveyed to the receiver ll. said cross1 lead S is incommunication with the latter irvineans of pipe 1G'. The pipe lo extendsin one direction to the 3 arising from the retort. and inthe oppositedirection to cross` head 1T with which it is in communicationi by meansof a` connection 18. As it is desirable, that the passage, ot' thevapors through the pipo 16 may be controlled. said pipe has a valve 1S)in the. length thereof as will be readily` understood without furtherdescription.

Situated Within a cooling tank 20 adapted pipe -to be unnecessary.

l conveyed by the pipe 1li to receiver 1l.

to contain any suitable cooling medium, are a plurality of verticallydisposed coils 21. The upper ends of the coils Q1 are connected with thecross head 17, while the lower ends thereof extend through the rear endof they tank 20 and enter the tail house 22. lithin the tail house 522there is disposed what might be termed, a primary receiver, in the formof a Vpipe Q3, Fig. 3. The free ends of the coils 21 are connected tothe pipe 233 as clearly shown in Figs. 5 and 4. Extending?r from thecentral portion of the pipe 23 is an oil conducting pipe 21, the freeend of which communicates with what might be termed a secondary receiveror pipe 25 also situated withinthe tail house 22. To enable the operatorto be cognizant of the grade of the oil passing through the pipe :Z-land at the Vsame time, malte suitable h vdronielertests. the pipe il hasiu thc length thereof, a T-shaped sight tube 25 by means of which oilmay be withdrawn for the purpose of niakimgr lrwlrometer tests and alsoexamined while passingr through the tube to determine its quality. Asthis is the usual construction of any refining apparatus, further'lescription of the saine is thought Extending from the secondaryreceivingV pipe :Z5 are three pipes 26, Fig. 1, the free ends of whichcommunicate with receivers 27, 28 and Qi) respectively. .llach of thepipes )ust referred to is provided with a controlling valve 30 so thatthe condensate may be caused to pass to' any desired receiver.

From. the foregoing description it will become, apparent that the modusoperand-i of our improved refining,r apparatusI will be. as follows:lVhcn the crude oil within the retort 1 is heated, the vapors risingthere- 'from and collecting' in the dome 2 will pass upwardly throughthe pipe 3 into the cross head 4- whence they will pass through thevarious pipes comprisingr primary manifold 7 to manifold 9. Un passingthrough the primary manifold T the heavier vapors of course will becondensed, the condensate eollecting in cross head 8 whence it will AbeAs the lighter vapors pass onward through the pipes of the secondarymanifold l0 more of the heavier vapors will be condensed. the condensatedescending pipes 9, by reason of the, incline of the latter, will, enterthe pipes of manifold 7 and pass down the same to cross head H. "heresidual vapors upon leaving the secondary manifold 10 will pass intotheI pipe of the tertiary manifold 12 and here again the process ofcondensationv will be repeated, the heavier oils dropping into the crosshead 13 whence they will pass to the receiver 14. The heavier oilsaccumulating in receiver 14 may be returned to the retort by pipe 15, orotherwise used as desired. However, the uncondenscd or residual vaporcollecting` in the top of receiver il will pass through the pipe 15 tothe pipe lo; upon enteringl the latter it will cunvnuc therethrough andthrough the curved connection to cross head 1T. From the cross head 1T,these. vm pors will pass through the various coils 21 within the coolinetanh 2U and thence to the reccivinnr pipe in the tail house Fromreceiving pipe 2li the condensate pas through the oil conductingr pipeil ars. sight tube 25 to the secondary receiving; pipe Q5. '.lhedifferent grades of oil may be collected in the various receptacles if?,2S and )9 respectively. Of course, it is understood in this connectionthat the le. ceptacle into which the oil is permitted to pass, isdetermined by the operator who from time to time makesl h vdrometertests and according to the disclosure of these tests, opens the valvewhich `gives acc s to the desired receptacle. llowever, this ture is ofthe character usually en'iployed in the industry under consideration andfurther description with respect to the,l saine is thought to heunnecessary.

1t may some times lie der.4 fable to permit the vapors rising from theretort 1 lo pass directly to thel coils J1 and when such is the case.valve fi" disposed in the length of pipe il is closed and valve, lil inthe length of the pipe ifi is oliened, eonsiaiuently the vapors insteadof passing: through pipev 25 and to they various nianifoliils as usual,permitted to pass from the retort to the coilsI '21. This condensate maybe collected anfl used for any purpose desired.

lt will now liet-onze apparent. that by Tea- .son of the increawdi-oiulensingr area provided b v the relatiwly arranged inter-roueniunicalincr manifolds` together with the connectionsthrough thi`instrumentality of which the products of volutiliyal'idn may be returnedto the primalfv manifold, and the condensate returned to the retort forfur ther volatili/ation and condensation. an extreme`y thoroughrelining`r of the heavier oils 'is obtained. so that the production oflight oil from a given amount of mineral oil f: r exceeds that nowobtained by the refining apparatus heretofore in use.

lt is also herol to be noted with respect to the manifold 7 that owingto the manner in which the latter is connected with the cross head 4 thecondensate descending: from the pipes of manifold 7 will not collect inthe cross head through which the vapors have to pass but will collect inthel separate cross. head 8 so that consequently all possh bility of thecondensate discoloring the lighter vapors is eliminated,

Although in the foregoingdescription we have described certain elementsbest adapted to perform the functions set forth, it is obvious thatvarious changes in form, proportion and in the minor details ofconstruction may be resorted to, within the scope of the appended claimswithout departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the principlesof the inventionA We claim as our invent-ion:

l. The combination ot' the vapor outlet of a boiler, for conveyinof thehot gases and vapors to be condense a header connected thereto, aprimary condenser' comprising a plurality of upwardly extendingcondensing pipes. cach connected at its lower end with a condensatecollector, an inlet from said header to each of said condensing pipes ata point a short distance above the lower ends oi' 'said pipes, wherebythe hot gases and vapors are brought for a short time only into contactwith the condensate in said condensing pipes, and are then removed fromcontact therewith, before said condensate can be injured by prolongedcontact with said hot vapors and gases, inclined condensing pipesconnected at one end with the upper end of each of said upwardly extend`ing pipes, downwardly extending condensing pipes connected with theother end of each ot' said inclined pipes, means for pass-Y ing thcuncondenscd vapors from said pri mary condenser through a secondarycon-- denser, and a valved by-pass for passing the vapois from saidvapor outlet directly into said secondary condense1.\vhen desired.

2. 'The combination ot the vapor outlet of a boiler for conveying thehot gases and lvapors to be "omlensed, a header connected thereto, aprimary condenser comprising a plurality of upwardly extendingcondensing pipes cach connected its lower end with a condensatecollector, an inlet from said header to cach ol' said condensing pipesat a point a short distance above the lower end thereof, whereby the hotgases and vapors are brought for a short time only into contact withthel condensate in said vertical pipes, and are then removed fromContact therewith before said condensate can be. injured by prolongedcontact with said hot gases and mpors, a plurality of inclinedcondensinpr pipes, the lower end of eachiof which is connected to theupper end of one of said upwardly extending condensing pipes, wherebythe condensate produced in said inclined pipes can flow back into saidvertical pipes. a plurality of downwardly extending condensing pipeseach of which is connected to the upper end of one of said inclinedpipes, a liquid collecting means at the lower end of each of saiddownwardly extendiiuf; rondcnsing pipes, a separating vessel connectedwith said collecting means, for separating the condensate from theuncondcnaed frases and vapors, a secondary condenser and means forpassing the uncondenscd gases and vapors l'rom said separator throughsaid secondary condenser, and a valved by-pass for passing the gases andvapors, at times from said vapor outlet directly to said secondarycondenser, and means for conveying the material condensed in saidprimary condenser back to the boiler for retreatment.

3. A primary condenser comprising a plurality of vertical pipes, liquidcollecting means connected to the lower end of all of said pipes. avapor inlet to each of said pipes located a short distance above saidliqpid collecting means whereby the condensatein said vertical pipeswill be brought for a short interval only, in the form of a flowing filminto contact with the hot gases and vapors entering said condenser, andwhereby said condensate will be removed from contact with saidhot gasesand vapors before said condensate can be injured by prolonged contactwith said hotgases and vapors, another series of verticalpipesivprovided with` a liquid collecting means con-y necting the lowerends thereof, a connection1 vbetween the upper ends of said first men!y`tionecl vertical pipes and the upper ends of said second mentionedvertical pipes, a receptacle connected to each of said condensatecollectors, a secondary condenser for con-- densing the gases and vaporsleaving said separating receptacle, and meansv for bypassing all of saidhot gases and vapors around said primary condenser,

4. In a condenser, the combination of a vapor pipe for conveying the hotgases and vapors to be condensed, an upwardly eX- tending condensingpipe, an inlet pipe connecting said condensing pipe at a distance aboveits lower end and remote from its upper end with said vapor pipe,whereby the hot gases and vapors are brought for a short time only intocontact with a film of con densate in said vertical pipe., and are thenremoved therefrom before said condensate can be injured by prolongedcontact with said hot gases and vapors, an inclined condensing pipe ofwhich the lower end is connected to the upper end of said upwardlyextending pipe, whereby the condensate in said inclined pipe can runback into said vertical pipe, a downwardly extending condensing pipeconnected to the upper end of said inclined pipe, and a liquidcollecting i means at the lower end of said downwardly extending pipe,connected with a separator, to separate the condensed liquid from theuncondensed gases.

5. In a condenser the combination of the vapor outlet of a boiler, forconveying the hot gases and vapors from said boiler to a c( ndensingsystem, a primary condenser co uprising an upwardly extending condens-.ing pipe, an inlet pipe connecting said condensing pipe, at a distanceabove its lower end and remote from its upper end` with said vaporoutlet, whereby the hot gases and wipers entering;r the said upwardly extending' condensing,r pipe are brought, into contact with a flowing lilmof condensate therein, and whereby said hot'gases and vapors are removedfrom direct Contact therewith before Said condensate Could becomeinjured by prolonged contact with said hot gases and vapors, an inclinedcondensing`r pipe ol' which one end is connected to the upper end ofSaid upwardly extending pipe` a downwardly extending condensing;Y pipeconnected to the other end of said in elined pipe, liquid connectingrmeans at the lower end of rsaid downwardly extending eondeminq pipe` anda :sei'izurating' receptacle connected with said liquid collectingmeans. capable ol' allowingr the separation ot' the gases and vaporsfrom the liquid` a see` ondary condenser connected to said separatingreeeictacle at a point ahove the nornial liquid level therein, forfurther coolingV the gases and vapors leaving Said liquid collectingmeans.

(l. A distilling apparatus comprising a boiler, a vapor outlet pipe forconductingr the hot faxes and vapors from Said boiler to a eondenaing,ystenn a primary condensing` system comprising a header connected tosaid vapor outlet, a series of vertically arranged condensingr pipes,all connected at their lower ende` to a liquid collecting' means, a gasand vapor inlet toleaeh of said vertical pipes from said header,entering said vertical pipes at a Short distance above the lower endthereof, whereby a film of condensate in' each of Said pipes is broughtinto Contact with the hot rimes and vapors entering the primarycondenser, for a period of time insuflieient to materially injure saidcondeneate. a pluralitv ot' inclined eondensilig pipes, the lower endot' each of which is connected tothe upper end of one of said verticalpipe whereby the condensate in said inclined pipes can run into Saidvertical pipes. a plurality ot' downwardl \v extending condensingrpipes, each olf which is connected at it upper end. to the upper end ofone of said inclined pipes, a header connecting the lower ends of Saiddownwardly extending condensingA pipes, and connected with aSeparating,r reeeptacle, a connection from said liquid collecting meansto said separating;V reeepta,:le a vapor outlet from said receptacle toa secondary condensing System, and. a by-paas from Said vapor outletpipe directlv to said secondary condensing system, whereby said primarycondensing system may be disconnected when desired, and a valved pipefor connecting,r said separating receptacle and said boiler whendesired.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands in presence of twosubscribing Witnesses.

JAMES R. TIMMINS. ORLANDO SVVAIN. ll'itnesses GEO. C. GIBSON, R. E.GRIFFITH.

